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General discussionThe Dangers of Pushing Through the Backlog(57 posts)(57 posts)
(57 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted November 06, 2017
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Leucius: ... Long story short, for me at least, pushing through my backlog this season has really left me not wanting to play much of anything, in fact it has me questioning the validity of being a core gamer (My term for people who game as their primary pastime) as I approach the big 4-0, and wondering what else I could accomplish in life. I'm also thinking about all the money I've spent over the years, how many games I have left to "complete" if I choose to do that, and I'm left scratching my head at it all. ...
Congratulations! You're were cured by an overdose. It does happen occasionally. :)

Btw. Not buying more games than you can/want to play is a very effective and efficient way of keeping the backlog short.
Post edited November 06, 2017 by Trilarion
Posted November 07, 2017
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Leucius: ... Long story short, for me at least, pushing through my backlog this season has really left me not wanting to play much of anything, in fact it has me questioning the validity of being a core gamer (My term for people who game as their primary pastime) as I approach the big 4-0, and wondering what else I could accomplish in life. I'm also thinking about all the money I've spent over the years, how many games I have left to "complete" if I choose to do that, and I'm left scratching my head at it all. ...
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Trilarion: Congratulations! You're were cured by an overdose. It does happen occasionally. :)

Btw. Not buying more games than you can/want to play is a very effective and efficient way of keeping the backlog short.
It's obvious but so effective. I hardly buy games at all anymore, compared to my previous buying habits.
Posted November 07, 2017
I can relate to a lot of what you said here, as I have faced the same dilemma.
I prefer to have fun, and I think that finishing games is a bit overrated. I do appreciate the rewards of persevering and overcoming obstacles, improving your skills within a game, but enough is enough.

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dtgreene: Just one little nitpick; this isn't always true.
I think "Unfair Mario" was also a game not designed to be fun.

Also, I don't think that every game is a work of art, just as not every photograph is a work of art.
Posted November 11, 2017
I'm finding what's helping, is I'm forcing myself if it's almost payday, to wait for payday before buying another game, as well. Even if it's only $5 or $10 (which most of my games tend to be) I wait, or nowadays I wait for it to go on sale.

Just some more tips from your local Cymster (AKA Leucius)
Posted December 12, 2017
Looking at setting down WoW for a couple of months to clear out some more of the backlog. I've done ok considering my plan was to buy one game a month. I've wavered a little, which is to be expected, but it seems the days of buying 5 games a day for no reason other than to rack up debt are OVER.

All things considered, this year has been a blessing to me. I have a ton to be thankful for, and a lot of good people in my life. As the year draws to a close, I guess my message is don't worry about how many games you finished this year. The whole point of being a gamer is to play games for fun.

Have a wonderful day, and Season's Greetings!
-Cym
Posted January 06, 2018
Figured it was time to revisit this thread. I've taken a dabble at streaming on twitch via my ps4's streaming capabilities, and it's helping me finish games. I made a deal with myself that I would have to finish Batman Season 1 before starting up any streaming, so I did so. Finished Abzu onstream tonight, and also have done a couple playthroughs of Stories (the one with the 20 or 25 endings).

Streaming is actually helping me focus on a handful of games at a time, and not spaz out and try to play everything all at once. For some people, spreadsheets help. For others, a list in Word. For me? It seems like streaming is giving me something to do with my free time where I can contribute to the twitch community in a (hopefully) positive manner, and complete some of the backlog at the same time.

Inspiration comes in many forms.
Posted January 06, 2018
A good chunk of wisdom, thanks for sharing. I actually came to realize how counterproductive it is fairly recently, myself. Life is pretty short & there are plenty of great games - but substantially more substandard ones - which would you rather spend that time on?
Posted January 06, 2018
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apparition: I've been thinking a lot about this too. I've been trying to push through some of my backlog by starting with older, smaller games. Ive mostly been sticking to old Sierra games that I can install into DOSBox on my work computer for small game time during my lunch break.

I got stuck in the Police Quest series for a couple of months because I got close to getting burned out on it but wanted to finish the series. I'm now at Police Quest 4, which is a big nostalgia hit for me and I'm still having trouble getting started.
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Leucius: Best advice I was ever given was by a gog'er named KneeTheCap - he tells me whenever I get burnt out on a game or I'm just generally not feeling the gaming vibe, three things:

1) Games are a work of art
2) Never regret purchasing a game, as you are at the very least, collecting a piece of art
3) Games are meant to be FUN - if you are getting burnt out on a game, or something about a game rubs you the wrong way, put it down and move on.

I've taken these three basic ideas towards gaming, and it's helped me a lot. I'm lucky to know Knee, he's a great friend that I've leaned on heavily over the years.

Above all else, have FUN with your games. It doesn't matter if you own 5, 50, or 500. You supported a medium and artform that at one point almost didn't survive. Enjoy your hobby. Between my friends I talk to, personal introspection, and friendly advice from people in threads like this, this is what I try to live by with my hobby. I no longer look at my game collection as something to be ashamed of. People have hobbies far more expensive than mine, and considering I'm poor, it's a pretty cheap hobby to have.

Good luck!
My friend is always suffering with 2 of the last points. Whereas I've learned to game when I feel like and what I feel like, he is tortured when he goes back to an older game. He also agonize over buying new games because he has "too many" games already. He also feels like he should be playing through games as much as possible, but it won't feel fun if you have to force yourself to do it. I've tried explaining all this to him but he has always been a bit of a neurotic. Meanwhile, I'm replaying my favorite games for the umpteenth time and watch as my game library quietly expands. I'll play something new if I get bored of the old games, and that's the way I enjoy my games.

You on the other hand seem like you enjoy clearing your backlog as a challenge, so keep doing what you're doing.
Posted January 06, 2018
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WiteNoiz: A good chunk of wisdom, thanks for sharing. I actually came to realize how counterproductive it is fairly recently, myself. Life is pretty short & there are plenty of great games - but substantially more substandard ones - which would you rather spend that time on?
Yeah. Ultimately what does it matter in the end? We're not going to have marks on our tombstones/urns showing how many games we've completed :)
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Leucius: Best advice I was ever given was by a gog'er named KneeTheCap - he tells me whenever I get burnt out on a game or I'm just generally not feeling the gaming vibe, three things:

1) Games are a work of art
2) Never regret purchasing a game, as you are at the very least, collecting a piece of art
3) Games are meant to be FUN - if you are getting burnt out on a game, or something about a game rubs you the wrong way, put it down and move on.

I've taken these three basic ideas towards gaming, and it's helped me a lot. I'm lucky to know Knee, he's a great friend that I've leaned on heavily over the years.

Above all else, have FUN with your games. It doesn't matter if you own 5, 50, or 500. You supported a medium and artform that at one point almost didn't survive. Enjoy your hobby. Between my friends I talk to, personal introspection, and friendly advice from people in threads like this, this is what I try to live by with my hobby. I no longer look at my game collection as something to be ashamed of. People have hobbies far more expensive than mine, and considering I'm poor, it's a pretty cheap hobby to have.

Good luck!
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LobsterPyro: My friend is always suffering with 2 of the last points. Whereas I've learned to game when I feel like and what I feel like, he is tortured when he goes back to an older game. He also agonize over buying new games because he has "too many" games already. He also feels like he should be playing through games as much as possible, but it won't feel fun if you have to force yourself to do it. I've tried explaining all this to him but he has always been a bit of a neurotic. Meanwhile, I'm replaying my favorite games for the umpteenth time and watch as my game library quietly expands. I'll play something new if I get bored of the old games, and that's the way I enjoy my games.

You on the other hand seem like you enjoy clearing your backlog as a challenge, so keep doing what you're doing.
I do enjoy clearing games as part of a challenge. However, I also enjoy having fun with games, regardless of how recently I've gotten them.

I am a bit neurotic as well, so I can kind of relate to your friend. It took me a huge break from WoW to realign myself gaming-wise and start enjoying my hobby again. Even what I just posted last night about streaming, I don't know that I'll keep streaming or not, but it's helping me right now play through games I normally wouldn't play through, because I don't own a ton of games on PS4.

I think realistically, us as people, we're all much too hard on ourselves, besides the people who should be. I'm no saint, I'm no genius, but I know that part of enjoying life is letting yourself enjoy it.

Have a great day!
-Sim
Post edited January 06, 2018 by CymTyr
Posted January 06, 2018
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CymTyr: [...] We're not going to have marks on our tombstones/urns showing how many games we've completed :)
You could. ;)
Posted January 07, 2018
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CymTyr: [...] We're not going to have marks on our tombstones/urns showing how many games we've completed :)
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HunchBluntley: You could. ;)
Attachments:
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Posted January 07, 2018
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HunchBluntley: You could. ;)
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tinyE:
*Bill Paxton voice*
GAME OVER, MAAAN.
Posted January 07, 2018
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Leucius: Greetings,
danger


the possibility of suffering harm or injury.
"his life was in danger"
synonyms: peril, hazard, risk, jeopardy, endangerment, imperilment, insecurity; More
a cause or likely cause of harm or injury.
plural noun: dangers

synonyms: menace, hazard, threat, risk, peril;

Now,that is an extreme terminology.
Posted January 07, 2018
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Leucius: Greetings,
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Tauto: danger

the possibility of suffering harm or injury.
"his life was in danger"
synonyms: peril, hazard, risk, jeopardy, endangerment, imperilment, insecurity; More
a cause or likely cause of harm or injury.
plural noun: dangers

synonyms: menace, hazard, threat, risk, peril;

Now,that is an extreme terminology.
In my situation, I was discussing hazards or risks. ;)
Posted January 07, 2018
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Tauto: danger

the possibility of suffering harm or injury.
"his life was in danger"
synonyms: peril, hazard, risk, jeopardy, endangerment, imperilment, insecurity; More
a cause or likely cause of harm or injury.
plural noun: dangers

synonyms: menace, hazard, threat, risk, peril;

Now,that is an extreme terminology.
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CymTyr: In my situation, I was discussing hazards or risks. ;)
Hazards and risks? that's extreme also:)
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionThe Dangers of Pushing Through the Backlog(57 posts)(57 posts)
(57 posts)